Playball



July 15, 1958 R. F. WHEELER PLAYBALL Filed Jan. ll, 1955 t A mfg?,

INVENTOR United .itates Patent O PLAYBALL Application January 11, 1955, Serial No. 481,148

1 Claim. (Cl. 273-65) The present invention relates to playballs and particularly to basketballs and the like type of balls having molded channel seams in the surface.

An object of the present invention is to provide a playball having a seam construction which provides a maximum of gripping for the ball.

Another object of the invention is to provide a spherical playball in which all of the seams are anchored to lock all of the panels to the ball to prevent peeling of the panels at an exposed seam.

These objects are accomplished by providing a spherical ball with channel seams extending over the surface and in which crossing channel seams are provided at the poles of the ball to enhance the gripping of the ball. In basketballs and the like where a plurality of panels are employed to form the cover for the ball, the edges of the panels are treated and coated with a moldable compound which is molded and recessed to provide a locking means for the edges of the panels.

Other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the specification and claim when considered in connection with the drawings in which:

Figure 1 shows a molded ball having the seam construction of the present invention.

Fig. 2 shows a ball prior to the coating and molding of the seams.

Fig. 3 shows an enlarged fragmentary sectional view through one of the seams.

While the present invention may be employed in various types of playballs, it is herein illustrated as applied to a spherical ball such as a basketball or the like playball having a usual carcass (not shown) provided with a cover 11 of leather or other suitable cover material adhered thereto having a grained outer surface. The cover comprises, in effect, two dumbbellshaped units 12, 12a disposed thereon, each of which is bisected by a longitudinal bisector 13 and a transverse bisector 14 so that eight panels are provided. As shown in Fig. 2, all of the abutting edges 15 of the panels are roughened as at 16 by cutting, abrading or the like so that the grained surface of the leather is removed exposing the fiber of the leather. A suitable bonding agent is applied to the roughened edge portion after which a coating or layer of rubber-like material is placed over the treated edge and the ball placed in a mold and the seams molded to provide recessed seams 17, as shown in Fig. 1, of generally channel shape. As is clear from Fig. l, all of the seams, including those between the dumbbell-shaped units and those formed by the longitudinal and transverse bisectors are covered and molded. During the molding operation, the material overlying the seams, which penetrates between the edges unites .with adhesive for securing the panels to the carcass and forms an anchor or lock to prevent peeling of the edges of the panels in use.

The present invention also provides an improved gripping surface for the ball at the poles thereof for, as shown in Fig. l, the longitudinal bisector 13 and transverse bisector 14 cross at the poles of the ball and the grooved seams extending thereover provide cross channels in the ball at these points providing an improved gripping surface for the ball.

It will be seen, therefore, that the present invention provides a means for insuring the locking of the panels to the ball and also an improved gripping surface.

Variations and modifications may be made within the scope of the claim and portions of the improvements may be used without others.

I claim:

In a basketball having a cover adhered thereto and formed of a pair of dumbbellshaped units, each unit being bisected longitudinally and transversely to provide an eight panel cover, the improvement wherein all of the edges of the cover forming the seams between the panels have the outer surface removed and are coated and molded to provide a recessed channel groove, the molded coating interlocking and securing the panel edges to the ball to prevent peeling of the cover at the seams and the longitudinal and transverse bisectors forming seams providing cross channels at the poles of the ball to provide improved gripping surfaces for the ball.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 568,871 Nisbet Oct. 6, 1896 1,556,099 Gilson Oct. 6, 1925 2,182,053 Reach Dec. 5, l1939 2,579,294 Brown Dec. 1S, 1951 2,609,202 Winterbauer Sept. 2, 1952 

